According a Japanese study (see bottom for citation), psychologists found that context under which a violent act is portrayed in a video game is more important than the severity of that violence. Surprisingly, they discovered that children who play violent characters and participate in horrible acts of violence in games do not become violent or aggressive; those that are more likely to become violent or aggressive are the children who play video games in which they control a superhero or someone who is clearly on the side of the righteous that act out violently in order to stop evil plots or to avenge against villains.
Parents may prefer that their kids play games in which they control superheroes that protect people and punish criminals than games like GTA, but what they should realize is that the portrayal of *justified* violence is likely to change the child's behavior much more than that of some random acts of violence. And when you think about it, it's not just video games--our society is rife with *justified* uses of violence, both depicted (TV, movies, etc.) and real (war, police, etc.). That has to have something to do with all the violence we have in our society.
Shibuya A, Sakamoto A. (2004) "The quantity and context of video game violence in Japan: Toward creating an ethical standard." In Shiratori R, Arai K, Kato F (Eds.), Gaming, simulation and society: Research scope and perspective. Springer-Verlag. Pp. 111-120.
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According a Japanese study (see bottom for citation), psychologists found that context under which a violent act is portrayed in a video game is more important than the severity of that violence. Surprisingly, they discovered that children who play violent characters and participate in horrible acts of violence in games do not become violent or aggressive; those that are more likely to become violent or aggressive are the children who play video games in which they control a superhero or someone who is clearly on the side of the righteous that act out violently in order to stop evil plots or to avenge against villains.
Parents may prefer that their kids play games in which they control superheroes that protect people and punish criminals than games like GTA, but what they should realize is that the portrayal of *justified* violence is likely to change the child's behavior much more than that of some random acts of violence. And when you think about it, it's not just video games--our society is rife with *justified* uses of violence, both depicted (TV, movies, etc.) and real (war, police, etc.). That has to have something to do with all the violence we have in our society.
Shibuya A, Sakamoto A. (2004) "The quantity and context of video game violence in Japan: Toward creating an ethical standard." In Shiratori R, Arai K, Kato F (Eds.), Gaming, simulation and society: Research scope and perspective. Springer-Verlag. Pp. 111-120.